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June 26, 2007

Mapo Tofu

My ultimate mother-in-law (she'd kick your MIL's ass in a cooking contest for sure) made us beef broccoli and her version of non-spicy mapo tofu yesterday. Her mapo tofu is one of my favorite dishes of hers, behind her spare ribs, which completely own me. I decided to take only some of the tofu because I needed a lower point lunch today to help me get back on track.

Due to my husband's claim that onions are responsible for everything from cancer to blindness, she chops green onions and then banishes them to one side of the pan. I felt bad because I know what a pain it can be to chop them so fine and with the green onions put in time-out, no one took them. I ate a bunch of them and was happy to take more to accent my lunch.

To help me make it through the day I packed a veggie bento. The top layer has asparagus fried in olive oil and garlic salt. I made too much so Mr. Pikko and I had a few of the extras. Pan frying is the best way imo. I've done them in the oven before but I get bored standing around then forget about it and by the time I get back they're past the point of no return and I end up with olive green limp stalks instead of bright green spears of goodness. With pan frying I stand there constantly flipping it around and can pick them out as they're done.

On the bottom is a small KCCA Salad. I just realized that it sounds like a radio station, haha! Speaking of radio, if any of my Hawaii readers happened to be listening to the Leaheys on Kumu yesterday, I was the Crystal that called in asking if they were going to interview BJ Penn. I get so nervous calling radio stations, but luckily didn't stutter more than once this time.

I want to thank all of the people that have been rallying and voting for me at Allakhazam. You guys have gotten me over 50 votes in just one day!! <3

2 comments:

Anonymous
said...

dear miss pikko,i'm stepping out of my box to write you b/c i just had to! i don't recall exactly how i found your bento blog but wanted to let you know it's FABULOUS! i LOVE it! it's fun to read and the photos are great! best of all, it's inspired me to eat better. my work day lunches haven't been the most thought out and i used to think it would take too much effort to make my own lunch everyday for lunch. i used to spend too much money (on crap!)despite the fact i earn pennies and didn't always pay attention to portion sizes. at first i couldn't figure out if your lunches were for an adult or a child but i was delighted by how tasty they looked. and as i scrolled thru the photos i realized i needed to get off my lazy duff and think about what i eat! i'm not sure about your comments about "points" and "core" but i take it you are dieting? based on your recent photo, i don't think you need to diet - you're tiny! as for me, i think i'm also drawn to your blog b/c i grew up in hawaii (though i now live in california) and many of the foods you reference remind me of my childhood. (i remember zippy's!!!) and though i haven't been back since 1986(!) i'll always be an island girl at heart.thank you for sharing your bentos! i look forward to more tasty delights!-big fan

Oh wow, what a great comment!! I'm so glad to hear that I've inspired you to eat healthier!!

The points and Core are references to the Weight Watchers diet. At the start of this year I was around 160 lbs, so I really needed to lose weight. I've dropped down 30 pounds and 8 pants sizes since then and owe so much of it to the Core diet and to having something fun and exciting to eat every day.

The funny part about my bentos is that when I look back at my old photos, I can actually remember how I felt eating them. That has gone a long way in making me eat healthier! Good luck to you and may you come back home someday soon. :)

About Me

I'm a 28 year old mom to two, who I lovingly refer to as Baby Girl and Buddy. I am married to Mr. Pikko. We live in Hawaii with invisible pets and a colony of ants. I lost 22 pounds in 3 months on Weight Watchers and now I just follow their Core diet "when I feel like it".